Nonviolent Communication (NVC) is based on the principles of nonviolence-- the natural state of compassion when no violence is present in the heart.

NVC begins by assuming that we are all compassionate by nature and that violent strategies—whether verbal or physical—are learned behaviors taught and supported by the prevailing culture. NVC also assumes that we all share the same, basic human needs, and that each of our actions are a strategy to meet one or more of these needs.

People who practice NVC have found greater authenticity in their communication, increased understanding, deepening connection and conflict resolution.The NVC community is active in over 65 countries around the globe.

Over the past several months I have begun to notice NVC cropping up more and more in conversations between Scrum Trainers and Scrum Practitioners. It has also become a frequent topic of presentations at Agile conferences.

Outside of my work with Scrum I have also become more aware of people using it in their day-to-day interactions. To describe it as a framework for communicating does not really address the depth to which it impacts the people who practice it. If practicing Agile is a way of transforming how we approach our work, NVC could be considered to be a way of transforming the way we interact with the people we are working with.

In this podcast interview, Juan explains how he became aware of NVC, how he began practicing it and how it has impacted his work with Scrum teams. This will be the first of a number of posts and podcasts on the subjects and I will also be posting about my efforts to incorporate it into my work coaching Scrum teams and providing Scrum training.

If you would like to contact Juan Banda, you can find his blog here. You can follow him on twitter here: @juanbandajara